[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 43 (Monday, October 30, 2000)]
[Pages 2529-2531]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Opinion-Editorial for the Belfast Telegraph: ``Why the Good Friday 
Agreement is Working''

October 19, 2000

    In his first Inaugural Address, President Abraham Lincoln called 
upon Americans to heed ``the better angels of our nature'' to dissuade 
them from embarking on a long and bloody civil war.
    Just over two years ago, the leaders and people of Northern Ireland 
summoned the better angels of their nature to negotiate, sign, and 
approve the Good Friday Agreement in a courageous bid to end nearly 30 
years of strife and agony. The Agreement reflected more than the common 
humanity that unites the people of Northern Ireland, no matter their 
faith. It reflected their self- interest--their heartfelt conviction 
that the sacrifices and compromises required for peace would be far 
easier to bear than the burden of more violence and bloodshed.
    George Mitchell said at the time that, as difficult as the Agreement 
was to negotiate, implementing it would prove more difficult still--and 
he was right. Two-and-one-half years later, the Agreement is working, 
but it is straining under intense criticism. I know that many in the 
unionist community feel deeply uncomfortable with changes relating to 
security and have concerns that the right to express British identity is 
being attacked. Nationalists and republicans have voiced concerns of 
their own about prospects for full equality and implementation of all 
aspects of the Agreement.
    I believe the Good Friday Agreement is fully capable of addressing 
these concerns. Now is the time to reaffirm its core principles.
      --The principle of consent: no decision on changing the 
            constitutional connection linking Northern Ireland with the 
            United Kingdom will be made without support from a majority 
            of Northern Ireland voters. This expresses respect for 
            British sovereignty in Northern Ireland--and also for the 
            legitimate wish of Irish people to pursue a united Ireland.
      --Self-government that is democratic, inclusive, and whose 
            participants use exclusively peaceful means to accomplish 
            their aims. The main institutions of government, an elected 
            Assembly and a power-sharing Executive, contain safeguards 
            for protecting minority interests and for excluding those 
            who use or support violence.
      --Strict protection of individual human and civil rights. On 
            October 2, Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom as a 
            whole incorporated the European Convention on Human Rights 
            into domestic law. The Northern Ireland Human Rights 
            Commission is now consulting on a Bill of Rights for 
            Northern Ireland.
    The people of Northern Ireland support these principles. And for all 
of their disagreements, so do Northern Ireland's politicians.
    The reason, I believe, is simple: Devolved government based on the 
Stormont Assembly and Executive is working. Even politicians from 
parties professing to be ``anti-Agreement'' are participating actively, 
delivering their constituents democratic and accountable regional 
government. For the first time in 30 years, Northern Ireland's 
politicians are producing their own budget and Programme for Government.
    This means that problems in the areas of agriculture, health, the 
environment and education, to name a few, are now the responsibility of 
local ministers who must answer to local voters. Some may be 
uncomfortable with power-sharing, but most agree that it is better than 
being powerless. And foreign investors are taking note of the prospects 
opened up by these developments--

[[Page 2530]]

for example, the 900-job call centre that a Denver-based company 
recently announced will open in north Belfast.
    What's more, the Agreement has enabled government ministers from 
Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to work together to benefit 
people throughout the island, by developing co-operation in such areas 
as trade, food safety and EU programmes. Sessions of the North-South 
Ministerial Council focus on concrete results rather than constitutional 
debate.
    Change this profound is never easy. I applaud the people of Northern 
Ireland for working to set aside old animosities and to accept even the 
most difficult elements of the Good Friday Agreement, such as prisoner 
releases. Yet tough challenges remain, such as adapting the police force 
in Northern Ireland to earn the confidence and support of all the 
people, and resolving the issue of paramilitary weapons.
    The Agreement offers a chance for a fresh start on policing. It 
established an independent commission chaired by Chris Patten with a 
mandate to make recommendations in this highly sensitive area. Some of 
the Patten Report's proposed changes have distressed those who honour 
the many sacrifices made by police officers in Northern Ireland.
    I urge everyone to reflect on Chief Constable Ronnie Flanagan's 
statement that the police stand ready for the challenges proposed by 
Patten and that it is his ``fervent hope that those in all our 
communities whom we exist to serve stand similarly ready for change.'' 
Everyone in Northern Ireland, including the police, deserve the chance 
to prove themselves anew under the Agreement. That said, for police 
reform to work, the entire community must take ownership of the process, 
taking not just the pain of the past, but more importantly the demands 
of the future, into account. The opportunity to achieve a police service 
that is broadly acceptable and fully accountable is too important and 
too close at hand to be lost to political brinkmanship.
    On the question of paramilitary organisations, the Good Friday 
Agreement is both clear and unequivocal--in it, all parties commit 
themselves to the total disarmament of all such groups. The IRA's 
decision to allow independent inspectors to view arms dumps last June 
and to verify that the weapons are not moved or used represented 
unprecedented progress. The IRA also committed itself to resume contacts 
with the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning and to 
put weapons ``completely and verifiably beyond use'' in the context of 
full implementation of the Agreement.
    Republican leaders say these commitments will be met. I welcome 
that, and look forward to further, timely progress in this vital area. I 
urge loyalist paramilitaries to make similar undertakings, even as 
courageous political leaders work to bring an end to the dangerous 
feuding under way in that community. All sides must work together to 
renew momentum toward the goal spelled out in the Agreement: total 
decommissioning of all paramilitary weapons.
    But perhaps harder still will be what George Mitchell called the 
``decommissioning of mind-sets''. The confidence that is the foundation 
of peace is all too easily eroded by distrust, defensiveness, and fear. 
It is almost always easier to fall back on old habits than it is to 
fulfil new hopes.
    In making decisions that will determine Northern Ireland's future, 
political leaders must pause and consider whether their actions will 
advance the cause of durable peace and genuine reconciliation. Every 
political leader is subject to short-term political pressures. But in 
Northern Ireland, I believe it is critical for all to consider how their 
actions in the heat of the moment today will be felt a year, a decade, a 
generation from now. It is human nature to take the good for granted and 
to focus on our frustrations, giving in to those frustrations would be a 
tragic mistake, with terrible consequences.
    On my last visit to Northern Ireland in 1998, I met with the 
families of the victims and the survivors of the Omagh bombing. That 
visit was a vivid reminder of the alternative to peace--and it made 
clear the determination of the people of Northern Ireland to overcome 
the sorrow and bitterness of the last 30 years and build a better 
future.
    During the recently completed inquest into the Omagh bombing, that 
determination

[[Page 2531]]

to build was still on display--as was the profound frustration that the 
dissidents responsible for the attack have not been brought to justice.
    For a durable peace to be achieved, both of these emotions must be 
harnessed effectively. And there should be no mistake about it: US law 
enforcement will aggressively target any effort from whatever quarter to 
undermine the peace process through illegal activities from the United 
States.
    The Good Friday Agreement represents the very best hope for lasting 
peace in Northern Ireland. Fully implementing, it will make Northern 
Ireland a beacon of hope for those who struggle for reconciliation and 
peace in every corner of the world--from the Balkans to the Middle East.
    I hope to be able to visit Northern Ireland soon, and to confirm 
that the will of the people is being heeded.
                                            William J. Clinton

Note: This opinion-editorial was released by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on October 20. An original was not available for verification 
of the content of this item. This item was not received in time for 
publication in the appropriate issue.